GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — Prosecutors have issued a felony murder charge against a man after the death of a toddler he’s accused of abusing, Kent County Prosecutor Chris Becker said.
Rickey Whiteside, 29, is being charged with felony murder in addition to first-degree child abuse.
He was arrested after deputies found his girlfriend’s 2-year-old daughter unresponsive at the Lazy T Motel located at 3370 Plainfield Ave. in Grand Rapids Township. Authorities were called to the motel after dispatchers received a call from a woman trying to check the toddler’s breathing.
Court documents identified the child as Londyn Florine Marie Amir. According to the probable cause documents, authorities said Whiteside confessed to “losing it,” punching the child in the face and knocking her to the ground when he was alone with her. The child’s mother was at the store at the time of the alleged incident.
Responding deputies attempted to revive the child until additional medical support arrived and took over. Londyn was in critical condition when she was taken to Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital, where she died days later.
Authorities have said the toddler’s injuries are consistent with an assault, and a doctor confirmed she had “traumatic injuries consistent with abuse for an undetermined amount of time.”
Whiteside’s bond is set for $1 million because of prior convictions for domestic abuse, drug use and trespassing.
An arraignment hearing hasn’t been scheduled at this time.